incuto has welcomed the publication of a new report by the Centre for Social Justice (CSJ). Entitled: Swimming With Sharks: Tackling Illegal Money Lending in England, the research behind the new paper was supported by incuto’s User Group, which contributed its time and experience to the CSJ on the subject of credit unions as an alternative to illegal lending.
The report uses the largest sample of illegal money lending victims to date, 1,252 in total, to analyse the landscape for this activity in England. The CSJ has been able to profile individuals who may be vulnerable to illegal lending, as well the lenders themselves and the cycle of dependency they create. The report goes on to make 24 recommendations on how to tackle the problem of illegal money lending in the future.
During the research phase of this report, the CSJ’s Acting Head of Debt Matthew Greenwood joined an incuto User Group Sharing Session to input and answer questions. The group discussed what an ideal credit union looks like, whether credit unions should be able to offer more financial products, how credit unions can go about proving their worth as providers of low-cost credit to financially excluded consumers, and what steps are needed so that credit unions can modernise their operations.
Matthew Greenwood comments: “We’re delighted to publish this report which aims to address the problem of illegal money lending head on. Spending time with the User Group was very helpful so I’d like to thank the credit unions involved for sharing their insights. We are sharing our Swimming with Sharks report with the government, and highlight the reforms needed so credit unions can grow as a viable alternative to illegal money lending.”
The report featured two case studies including Manchester Credit Union and Northumberland Community Bank, both of which use incuto’s technology. Notably, Manchester highlights its success with loan comparison websites through incuto, and how this is helping to broaden its reach to a wider pool of consumers.
“We believe credit unions are fundamentally important in the battle against illegal money lending,” says Lauren Langton, Director of Business Development, incuto. “Combined with the vital work of organisations such as Stop Loan Sharks, which investigates and prosecutes illegal money lenders, it’s about ensuring potential victims have access to affordable financial products, and that credit unions and community banks get the support they need from Government to expand their services as widely as possible.”